The Little Changes
by Mirai-tan
Summary: Keisuke/Akira. Fluff. Oneshot. Akira keeps thinking about how things have changed ever since he left Toshima with Keisuke. He also needs to figure out his true feelings for his friend. Can he say the words Keisuke wants to hear the most?


_This fanfiction takes place at the end of Keisuke's route. Enjoy!_

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The Little Changes

Nearly a year had passed since Akira and Keisuke had left Toshima. Back then Akira had never imagined, he would be able to live a normal life again. Still, he couldn't help but notice the little differences in his everyday life now compared to the time before Toshima.

He didn't earn his money with Blaster anymore, but instead worked at a repair shop with Keisuke. Though he still went to watch some battles from time to time, he didn't feel the need to fight anymore. He wondered if it was because Keisuke was by side. Of course Keisuke had always been around him, ever since they were children, but it was different now. Their relationship had changed. Keisuke loved him and everytime he told him so, Akira could feel how deeply Keisuke cared for him. With every word, every touch and every smile, Keisuke emitted the feeling of love. It was so obvious, that Akira wondered why he hadn't been able to see it before. After all, Keisuke had loved him for years. Maybe, because he hadn't cared about other people before. He hadn't been interested in the feelings of those around him and thus had been oblivious to the feelings of his childhood friend for such a long time.

But Akira was different now. From time to time he would notice the small changes inside him. For example, when he tried to see things from Keisuke's point of view or when he paid more attention towards other people and tried to think about how they were feeling. Akira thought about how Keisuke was responsible for this change inside him. Because he had made Akira realize, how important he was to him. Because Keisuke had shown him unconditional love. Because Keisuke had given him a reason to live.

But exactly because Keisuke had shown such a deep affection towards him, Akira couldn't help but wonder if he really loved Keisuke the same way. Of course Keisuke was important to him, but were his feelings on a par with those of Keisuke's? Weren't Keisuke's feelings much deeper than what he felt for him? Akira couldn't tell. The only thing he could tell was that he wanted Keisuke to stay by his side.

After they had left Toshima, Akira had told his childhood friend about his doubts. He had told him, how wasn't sure about his own feelings yet, but he had also made it clear, that he wanted both of them to stay together. That time Akira had felt a sense of guilt, because he didn't want to make Keisuke sad. To his surprise though, Keisuke had just given him an understanding smile, without a trace of sadness.

Ever since, Keisuke hadn't kissed him. But because they were living together, Akira could tell how much Keisuke was holding back for his sake. Sometimes he could see it in his eyes, when Keisuke was holding back the urge to kiss him or if he was in the mood for something more. But Keisuke never forced Akira to do anything. Instead Keisuke would only allow himself to do small stuff. Stuff like holding his hand, when they came home from work or leaning on his shoulder, when they would sit on the couch and watch TV. Sometimes Keisuke was bold enough to hug him lightly. Though Akira would usually feel embarrassed at times like these, he also wondered how it was possible that a small touch could make him feel so warm and at ease inside.

Whenever Akira let Keisuke hold his hand, Keisuke would give him a bright smile, as if the fact that Akira didn't push away his hand, would give him the biggest joy of all. Keisuke was always smiling. He had done so ever since they knew each other. But when had it started, that Akira felt Keisuke's smile was so radiant, that it was enough to lighten his mood even on a rainy day. It was stupid, but for some kind of reason just seeing that smile gave him the feeling everything was alright.

But Akira knew better than this. Even though their days could be full of joy, at night he could see, that not everything was quite alright. Keisuke was still plagued by nightmares from time to time. Because Akira was a light sleeper, he would always wake up, when Keisuke was tossing and turning in his bed, while having a nightmare. His usual smiling face would be contorted with pain and his fingernails would dig deep into the mattress. Akira had always felt helpless when he saw his friend like that. By now he had found a way to make those nightmares stop though.

Whenever Keisuke had a nightmare he would simply sneak into his bed and lay there with him. Then Keisuke would put his arms around him and desperately cling onto him in his sleep. After a while his tight hug would losen a bit, his breath would return to normal and his painful expression would turn into a peaceful one. It wasn't much Akira could do, but if he could help Keisuke just a little bit by lying beside him, he would do so whenever it was necessary.

Once morning came Akira would usually return to his own bed before Keisuke showed any sign of waking up. He didn't want him to find out what Akira was doing. First of all it was way too embarrassing and secondly Akira could just imagine the face Keisuke would make, if he ever found out. He would probably apologize and start thinking, he was a burden to Akira. That's the kind of person Keisuke was. But he didn't mind. In fact it was this gentle and caring side that Akira cherished about his friend.

Akira opened his eyes and looked at the digital clock standing on the nightstand beside the bed. It was just after seven a.m. Usually both of them would be having breakfast at this hour before heading to work. But today was sunday and they didn't have to work, so Keisuke wouldn't wake up before nine. Akira wondered since when it had become a routine for him to know the exact time Keisuke woke up and wake up just a little earlier. It was as if his body had been programmed to do so. This time however was different, there were still about 2 hours left and he couldn't understand why he had woken up so early this time.

But since he was awake now, Akira figured he might as well get up and take a shower. As soon as he attempted to get out of bed though, the arms around him tightened, preventing him from leaving. "Don't go..." he heard a soft, sleepy sounding voice whispering near his ear. Akira felt his skin reacting with goosebumps. All of a sudden he became very aware of the arms Keisuke had wrapped around him in his sleep, the heat of the body lying close beside him and the warm breath he could feel on his neck. Akira couldn't prevent his face from turning red. He was just glad that it was dark, so Keisuke wouldn't be able to see his face clearly.

"Since when have you been awake?" he asked a little flustered.

"Just for a little bit..." Keisuke replied, still sounding tired. "But you usually don't get up so early, so I thought it would be nice if you could stay a little longer."

Akira turned around to face him, his face had turned even redder. "...So... you knew all along..." He had wanted to sound angry, but his voice only gave away the embarassement he felt right now. All the time he had thought Keisuke hadn't noticed how Akira would sleep in his bed, whenever he was plagued by nightmares. He had always thought, if he would get up just a little earlier then Keisuke, his friend would never notice it. But maybe it had been different all along. Maybe Keisuke had simply waited until Akira got up, so he Akira wouldn't realize that Keisuke knew about it. Suddenly he felt like his sneaky action was childish.

"Akira..."Keisuke pulled him closer, so that his face rested against his chest and whispered "...thank you." Akira couldn't see Keisuke's face in the dark, but he knew that he was smiling happily right now. That alone made him notice how a warm feeling built up inside him. How come he had ever thought Keisuke would feel bad about what Akira was doing? That he would think he was a burden to Akira?

Because Akira sometimes forgot that he wasn't the only one who had changed due to the incidents in Toshima. Keisuke had changed a lot too. He had become a lot more confindent. He wasn't putting himself down anymore. He had become a person who was able to say a genuine thank you instead of an apology.

Akira could hear the frequent rhythm of Keisuke's beating heart. He didn't know why, but it made him feel calm and at ease. Come to think of it, back then in Toshima, after Keisuke had confessed to him and they had kissed, Keisuke had pulled Akira's hand to his chest so he could feel his heartbeat. Akira still remembered how fast Keisuke's heart had been beating that time. Afterwards Keisuke had searched for Akiras heartbeat too and had smiled once he had found it. Had Akira's heart been beating that fast too? He didn't know. But looking back, it had seemed like his heart had told Keisuke something Akira himself had never put into words.

Even though he had always been unsure about his feelings for Keisuke, he wondered if maybe the answer had been inside him all along and the only thing he needed to do in order to find out, was to listen closely. At least it was worth a try. Akira put his hand to his chest and tried to feel his own heartbeat.

"What are you doing?" Keisuke asked curiously.

"…" Akira didn't quite know how to reply to that. "…trying to find an answer I guess…"

Keisuke was staring at him for a short time, but then Akira felt a hand laying on top of the hand, he had pushed against his chest.

"Akira…I love you."

His heart beat faster. Akira didn't even need to concentrate to listen to his heartbeat. As soon as he had heard those words, his heart was beating so loud and so fast, he was sure Keisuke could feel it without a problem too. Apparently he was right, because he heard a low, happy laughter coming from him.

"Back then your heart was beating like this too" Keisuke said, as if he was remembering the happiest day of his life. "I really, really love you Akira." he said, gently caressing his hair. Akira had heard those words a lot of times before, but he had never been able to answer him. Now, that the answer was so clear to him, Akira felt the need to say it out loud. So that Keisuke would understand him. It was difficult and it felt embarrassing, but he still wanted to say it. He thought it was important to clearly convey his feelings to Keisuke right now.

"…I love you too, Keisuke." His voice come out quieter than intended. So quiet, that he thought Keisuke might have not heard him at first, because there was no reaction from him. But then Akira suddenly felt something wet dropping on his cheek. Tears.

"Keisuke…? Are you alright?" Akira asked slightly worried. He wasn't sure how to interprete those tears. But Keisuke simply nodded in response.

"Sorry…it's just that… I am so happy right now…" He buried his teary face in Akira's shoulder and hugged him so tightly it nearly hurt. "I knew that you loved me… ever since I felt your heart beating crazy… exactly like mine did back then… but…hearing those words from you…" Keisuke didn't finish his sentence. Apparently it was difficult for him to talk. His voice was shaking because of all those tears, yet it sounded so incredibly happy and emotional at the same time. Akira got the feeling, that Keisuke's emotions were flowing into him through the tears that touched his skin. He also felt an incredible happiness burning inside him. He had been able to make Keisuke happy. And even though it didn't make any sense to him, that thought made him feel happy too.

"Akira…" Keisuke said shyly, after he had calmed down. "Can I… kiss you?"

"…"

"No…?"

"Don't ask… just do it." It was too embarrassing to admit, that he also wanted to kiss Keisuke.

It had been such a long ever since their lips last met, that Akira had nearly forgotten the feelings it triggered inside him. A feeling of comfort, passion and the desire to never let go of the hand that was holding him. Now that he was feeling this way, Akira wondered, why he had ever doubts about his feelings for Keisuke. It didn't matter whether Keisuke's feelings for him were stronger than his feelings for Keisuke or the other way round. There was no reason to measure feelings and weighing them against each other. Keisuke loved him and Akira loved Keisuke as well.  
It was as simple as that.


End file.
